The MPEG-2 video standard is now a widespread standard since it is used in most applications implying digital video data manipulation, e.g. in the field of video broadcasting. For more flexibility, the so-termed scalability technique is advantageously used for simultaneously generating a base video signal coded in accordance with the MPEG-2 video standard, and a set of enhancement video signals of said base video signals. In particular, generating a scalable video signal can be used for adapting the bitrate to the communication channel bandwidth in suppressing or adding enhancement video signals to said scalable video signal. Said scalable video signal can be generated from an input video signal previously coded in accordance with the MPEG-2 video standard. To this end, a well known method consists of first decoding said input video standard for obtaining a decoded video signal, and secondly of re-encoding said decoded video signal by a scalable encoder for generating said scalable video signal.